Real Madrid – Atletico Madrid

Real Madrid – Atletico Madrid

As the Spanish La Liga table begins to find a sense of finality to it, the rumbling of the Madrid derby opens up some very interesting discussions. Only 4 points separate the pair now, and a result here will likely be determined by one thing – Cristiano Ronaldo

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The revival of Cristiano Ronaldo has been almost beyond belief. With 22 goals now in La Liga alone, the Portuguese has exploded in a way that many simply believed he no longer could. Real come into this one on the back of four league wins and a very impressive 3-0 win in Turin in midweek.

They come into this one mainly full strength, with the majority of their team back in contention after a period where Madrid often looked blighted by significant injury woes.

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Atletico meanwhile have lost two of their last six, winning the other four. They have been in mostly impressive form in 2018, and a midweek win in the Europa League only furthers their chances of lifting European silverware.

They head to the Bernabeu, though, knowing that a loss reduces their gap to a point. While mostly everyone is fit, it will be down to the cantera duo of Koke and Niguez to come out the other side of a gruelling encounter with 3 points. In front duo Diego Costa and Antoine Griezmann, though, they have a chance to get at Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane.

Match-up to Watch

This should be a hugely interesting match to watch. The impressive qualities of Ronaldo, Benzema, Griezmann and Costa are obvious. How the two defensive pairings handle the opposition strike partnerships will probably play a key role here. With both defences prone to mistakes, though, this could make for a very exciting match.